Barbarous names is a common term for words used in many
traditional
rituals. The term comes from the ancient Greeks, for whom barbaroi
(source of barbarous) meant anyone not speaking Greek. Barbarous names
were
non-sensible words that had power in magical rituals.

These words originated from different sources such as religion and
magical
terminology of ancient Egypt, Hebrew, and Persia. The origins of some
words
are cannot be traced and attempts of deciphering are of little benefit
because
many words have been reformed and distorted throughout the centuries.
Interesting
is the fact this distortion is found both in ancient and recent sources;
many spells in the Greco-Egyptian magical papyi contain barbarous names
that defy interpretation.

Examples of ancient barbarous names are ablanathanalba, sesengenbarpharanges,
akrammachamarei. By the Middle Ages shorter names from Greek and
Hebrew were preferred and commonly used, such asanexhexeton, baldachia,
and anaboria.

In the current magic renaissance barbarous names have lost their
importance
(or glamour), although some are still found in traditional magical rituals
such as the Bornless One and the Goetia as written by Aliester
Crowley. The Enochian language used in Enochian Magic practiced by
Elizabethan
occultists John
Dee and Edward Kelly still provides a major source of barbarous
names.

It is taught in magical theory, ancient and current, that the importance
of barbarous names resides in the sound, not their meaning. Classical
theorists
such as Iamblichus of Chalcis instruct their students not to decipher the
names or terms, even when deciphering is possible, but to concentrate on
the sound instead. The practicing of the sonorous thunder of barbarous
names
adds much to the psychological and magical effect of the ritual. A.G.H.

Source:

Greer, John Michael. The New Encyclopedia of the Occult. St.
Paul.
MN. Llewellyn Worldwide. 2005. pp. 58-59